Conventional rotary wing aircraft or helicopters are powered with either an internal combustion engine or a turbine engine that is coupled to a gear box system which transmits the rotational output of the engine to the main rotor of the aircraft and to the tail rotor of the aircraft. The gear boxes of rotary wing aircraft require regular monitoring and periodic maintenance to ensure their reliable operation. Gear boxes do not have graceful failure modes and if one piece should fail it is likely the entire gear box will fail. Gear boxes are also expensive to manufacture. Additionally, the tail rotor drive transmission of a rotary wing aircraft is complex, especially for helicopters having an air frame with a folding tail for ground storage. These tail rotor drive transmissions also require regular monitoring and periodic maintenance to guard against failures. The main rotor gear box and the tail rotor drive transmission of a rotary wing aircraft also employ hydraulic actuators and gear box driven hydraulic systems to control the main rotor gear box and tail rotor drive transmission. These hydraulic control systems add to the weight of the aircraft and reduce its operation efficiency.